The Best of the Worst Part 1: Archie

Thirty years ago when Archie Manning was leading the NFL on the receiving end of sacks, with a New Orleans offensive line made seemingly of crepe paper, I am pretty sure a young future MVP was taking some mental notes. A lot of Indianapolis's payroll is wrapped up in Peyton and his offensive line, and the results speak for themselves. Archie was a God to people of my parents' generation (they were both enrolled at Ole Miss during Manning's heyday), and it's easy to see why. Peyton and Tom Brady are masters of the accurate pass and the smart play, and while their records are undeniable, so is their distaste for taking hits. Like I said, if I were Peyton, watching my dad get his can knocked off by Jack Youngblood, I wouldn't blame him for not wanting to take hits. But you watch the way Archie played and the only word that suffices is "heroic". He made plays when they weren't available elsewhere on the field. He moved with the ball, he wasn't afraid to leave the pocket, and he suffered some punishing sacks for all of it. In a way, there's a lot more of Archie in someone like Steve McNair than Peyton. And while two of Archie's sons have won Super Bowls, and one of them is destined for the Hall of Fame, it's their Pops that to me is the ultimate hero. Ten seasons at the helm of the New Orleans Saints was a Sisyphean undertaking for the noble gentleman of Drew, Mississippi, but he seemed to face the odds with relish.